The Quality of Light
by StarCrossdSparrow
Summary: Smutty rewrite for the moments directly after 1x22. Spoilers for 2x01. LoVe smut.


Title: The Quality of Light  
Author: StarCrossdSparrow  
Pairing/Characters: Veronica/Logan  
Rating: M  
Chapter: 1/1  
Word Count: 3307  
Disclaimer: RT is the master of all things "Veronica Mars." I'll put everyone back when I'm done, so please don't sue.  
Spoilers: 2x01 "Normal is the Watchword"  
Summary: Smutty rewrite of what happened after Logan showed up at Veronica's apartment after the season one finale.  
Author's Note: The beginning is nicked from the 1x22 and 2x01 with a few authorial flourishes (a.k.a. "liberties").

**XxXxXxX**

3:07.

The clock was bright in the dark room. The only other source of light was the hazy security lights in the courtyard that streamed wearily through the stained glass windows in Veronica's bedroom. It had taken her a long time to get used to those lights when she'd first moved to the Sunset Cliffs. They reminded her too much of the seedy lighting that shone through her car windows when she sat across from the Camelot, waiting with her camera. Funny how the Camelot now seemed more normal to her than the home she'd grown up in.

She considered going back to sleep. Another knock sounded at the door. She sat up on her elbow and looked at the clock once more, frowning slightly at the absurd numbers.

Veronica got out of bed, still slightly fuzzy on why she felt so weightless. It rushed back, filling her up with the same light that the dream of Lilly had. Her dad was in the hospital, but safe under Mrs. Fennel's watch. Along with Duncan, she had found Lilly's murderer. Aaron Echolls was in jail. Her mother was gone. Again.

So, who was knocking on the door at 3:07 AM? The only piece of the puzzle she'd been completely wrong about was Logan. She sincerely hoped he was on the other side of that door. She had so much to explain. And to apologize for.

She twisted the handle. There, leaning on the railing in the shadows, nearly buckling under some invisible weight, was Logan. She began to smile. "I was hoping it would be you."

When he didn't answer, the smile slid from her lips. "Logan?"

He turned then. He was bleeding from several cuts on his face. He tried to smile. Or maybe it was a grimace. "Hey, Veronica."

She gasped as he collapsed into her arms. He's so heavy against her, Veronica knew that he couldn't stand on his own. "Logan, what happened?"

His only answer was a wheezing gasp. The sound chased curiosity down her spine and concern popped up in its place. She struggled to get him onto the couch. He tried to speak, but she stayed his lips with a press of her finger. Veronica left him reluctantly as she closed the door and dampened a tea towel.

When she returned to him, his eyes were shut tight. She laid a hand on his arm and he smiled wanly at her. Even that small gesture seemed to hurt him, but he didn't frown. She gave him two prescription ibuprofen. They were the strongest thing she had in the apartment, left over from a fierce sunburn. She knew they wouldn't be as effectual on his six foot frame as they'd been on her, but they had to be better than nothing.

She watched, cringing as he struggled to swallow the pills and the glass of water. She gathered him into her lap, hardly daring to look too closely at the vicious cut over his left eye as she dabbed away the blood and glass there.

"Can you tell me what happened?" Veronica asked, her voice hardly more than a whisper. She was scared that anything more than that, even a sharp intake of breath on her part, would cause him to crumble at her fingertips. He looked so fragile laid across her knees.

"They got me alone on the bridge," he answered, his voice stronger than it had been. She didn't know that it was merely her admission that she'd been hoping to see him that gave him strength. Even though the physical wounds still bled and ached, some of the emotional ones had begun to heal.

"Who's they?"

"Weevil." He paused, gritting his teeth on the pain that emanated across his brow. "And all the PCHers." He recounted the scene on the Coronado Bridge, feeling each kick to his face and ribs as though they were happening all over again. Only the damp terry cloth and Veronica's soothing fingers playing on his bruised flesh made the telling easier.

"What were you doing there?" she asked, as he finished.

"Having a drink?" Logan laughed and instantly, the ache that seared through him as his ribcage expanded made him wish he hadn't. He mistook Veronica's concerned look for disapproval and he continued, "Well, what do you think, Veronica? I mean, you'd broken up with me. You'd accused me of killing Lilly."

"You're lucky to be alive."

"Yeah, well, that's one way to look at it," he answered, omitting the dry laughter this time.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Honestly, Veronica? Why do you think I went out on that bridge?"

Veronica opened her mouth but just as quickly shut it. She knew, all right. But she couldn't fathom it.

"I almost wish they'd just have killed me." Logan shut his eyes on her sharp look.

Veronica continued to tend his abrasions wordlessly. When he was cleaned to the best of her ability, she laid a hand on his chest. "Logan, get up. I need to see about your ribs."

He laughed again. This time the pain wasn't as sharp. Perhaps the pills were taking effect. Or perhaps he was dying one part at a time. "What, no lecture about the importance of my life?" He sat up, albeit slowly, and watched her intently.

Veronica, for the first time in all the years he'd known her, avoided his gaze.

"Logan, there's something you need to know about your dad."

"Aaron Echolls, charged with murder." At her surprised expression, he added, "It's all over the radio." He fought the tears that spring to his eyes. He would not cry over that. He'd cried for Lilly. He'd cried for his mother. But, Logan would _not_ cry for him.

Veronica cut her eyes away from his at their sudden sheen. Logan frowned, "What? What is it?"

She shook her head, a blonde wave washing over her eyes. "Your shirt, Logan. I need to see if you have any broken ribs."

"He did something to you," Logan guessed, his voice flat. He made to shrug out of his jacket, temporarily forgetting his wounds. The movement flooded him with a red haze and the world turned to black for a long moment.

Then he felt Veronica's hands on him. The familiar sensation brought him back from the brink of unconsciousness. She was removing his coat, careful not to pull too hard. Once that was removed, her hands dropped to the hem of his tee shirt. The drying blood on the drab green cotton reminded Logan crazily of a martini olive. He smirked.

Her fingertips brushed over the skin of his abdomen and the touch sent a thousand volts to all the places that weren't hurting. Apparently, when some of one's body begins to numb from pain, everything else was overly sensitive. He closed his eyes, hoping, _praying_, that she didn't notice his shiver.

But, as usual, nothing escaped Veronica Mars. "Are you all right? Did I hurt you?"

_Talk about a loaded set of questions_, she thought. But, she wanted answers of the immediate variety.

Logan simply said, "No. I'm fine."

She snorted a sharp laugh. "That's not exactly a debate you're likely to win." She laid her hand on his left side, running her fingers gently up from the waist of his jeans to just short of his arm. Logan braced himself for her necessary inspection, trying not to tip his head back at the velvety touch that reminded him so much of a caress. When she ran her hand back down over the same territory, he did all he could to hold in a groan. She repeated the process on his right side. It was getting hard to ignore the intimacy of her fingers on his skin. Sweat beaded on his forehead.

"Logan?" she asked, her voice concerned at once. She laid a cool hand on his head with a frown. "No fever. That's good, I guess. I don't think any of your ribs are broken, either. They'll probably be bruised to Hell and back tomorrow, though."

Logan chuckled at her assessment, still wincing slightly at the pain laughter caused. "Thanks, doc. What do I owe you?"

Veronica suppressed a grin, "Would voluntarily enrolling in a Swiss boarding school be too much to ask? Because I'm getting tired to cleaning you up from scuffles with the area gangs."

Logan feigned hurt, "But I still have three more to anger. I can't possibly leave now."

Veronica smiled and watched him carefully. He was certainly going to look like hell tomorrow. But, right now, his hair was mussed and his cuts were clean. He sort of had a fallen angel quality about him with his dark eyes and pained grin. Veronica nearly laughed at the musing. _Logan, an angel? Impossible._

_But, in dreams and in love there are no impossibilities._

Veronica blinked at the stray thought. _Love? Where had that come from? _

She had just started to analyze it when Logan interrupted, "Where's your dad?"

Veronica pressed her lips into a thin line and looked away from him.

"Veronica? I sort of need to know if your dad is going to come barreling out of his bedroom, all blazing guns and paternal anger at the sight of me naked to the waist." Logan stopped, as if considering. "Unless you want all of your handiwork to go to waste, that is."

"He's in the hospital."

Logan's eyebrows lifted and he reached for her hands, "Why? Is he okay?" When she didn't answer immediately, he pressed on. "It was my fa- Aaron wasn't it? What did he do, Veronica?"

Veronica shook her head. "Just forget it, Logan. You've dealt with enough for one night."

Logan searched her face before replying. "Come on. You know as well as I do that that won't work. Tell me."

Veronica worried her lower lip in for a long moment. She looked down at her white fingers caught between his bruised ones. "He trapped me. In a freezer. And he set it on fire. Because I found out. My dad-" She swallowed hand on the tears that threatened, "My dad saved me. He was hurt."

Logan pulled her close. Within moments of wrapping his arms around her, he felt her small form rocking with silent tears. A few spilled onto his bare shoulder. He stroked her back, following the ribbing of her cotton tank top. He could see that he'd stained her shoulder with his blood. He held her tighter.

When Veronica's tears had stopped, she was almost surprised to have her face buried against his smooth shoulder. They'd come so quick and so hot, she never stopped to think about leaning on him. She just let her body take over.

She pulled back and looked up at him. He searched her face. His own was a mask of concern. And, without thinking, she tipped her lips up to his and laid a kiss there.

He kissed her back, moving his hands quickly into her soft hair. Her own hands moved up along his back, gentle but urgent. She curled her fingers and let them drag carefully back down, not immune to the trail of goose flesh she left in her wake. He groaned against her mouth at the delightful torture and moved to drop kisses along her earlobe.

"I'm sorry, Veronica," he murmured, nipping at the side of her neck and along her collarbone.

She leaned back, pulling harsh breaths as he chased kiss after kiss along her breast. She stayed him a moment, raising his face to hers. "I'm glad you were at my door, Logan."

He smiled, none of his earlier anger evident. He dipped his head back down to trace the collar of her tank top with hot kisses. Veronica found herself reaching down to part with the garment. She also felt her cheeks heat when she realized that she wore nothing beneath the top.

Logan's breath caught as he saw her for the first time stripped to the waist. He sucked in a ragged breath before grinning up at her. He shook and muttered, "Beautiful," before dropping his mouth back to her chest. He kissed along her collar, letting his hand trace the familiar territory of her waist and ribcage until he cupped her in one hand.

With a featherlight touch, he stroked her with his fingers and suckled her with his mouth. As he laved one nipple, he gently assaulted the other with his hand. When he finally grazed her sensitive flesh with his teeth, she moaned his name. He grinned against her and with his free hand, he skimmed over her flat tummy to the waistband of her shorts. When she didn't protest he slid them down lower, leaving his palm flat on her hip bone.

Their breathing had grown ragged, so Logan noticed when Veronica's had stopped altogether. When he looked up at her, he saw that she was holding her breath and watching him with a mix of fear and anticipation. He moved his hand away from her hip, afraid of frightening her.

She surprised him when she gulped in a breath and pushed his hand back with a sharp nod. She gave him an abashed smile and he grinned back up her before laying another kiss on her collarbone and one more on her lips.

"Are you sure, Veronica?" he asked, meeting her eyes.

She nodded once more, "I am." Her voice had a raspy quality to it that made Logan shiver. If she kept up the sex kitten thing, however unintentional, he worried that her first time was going to be memorable for all the wrong reasons.

He pushed away the last bit of clothing that separated her from him and ran his hand over her smooth, bare thigh before moving to the inside of her thigh. She was tense beneath him. He kissed her slowly, leaving his hand just south of her center, hoping that she'd relax. Within moments, he felt her ease beneath him. She remained pliable as he inched his fingers slowly up the inside of her thigh.

When he finally connected with her velvety wet folds, he had to bite his own lip to keep from crying out. She panted below him, watching the mix of emotions play on his face. She was stricken with the power she had over him, even though he was on top of her and she was completely naked. At last, she was unafraid. She spread her legs a little wider and pulled him down for another kiss.

Logan took the invitation and slid one finger into her. She was hot and tight. He had never been so careful in his life, only adding another finger when Veronica started hitching her hips into his hand. His thumb found the tightly packed bundle of nerves and stroked it with increasing intensity. She matched his passion in her kisses, thrusting her tongue into and out of his mouth, dragging her fingers over his back and through his hair.

Finally, Logan curved his fingers and beckoned. She came, magnificently grinding her hips into his hand. He moved away from her kisses and watched the delightful anguish unfold across her features. She gasped his name brokenly as she wound down, laying her hands on his shoulders as if to steady him, even when she was the one shaking.

As he pulled his hands away, she pulled him down to her. "That was-" she shook her head and shut her eyes, speechless. She expelled a long breath before opening her eyes. "It was incredible." She let her lashes fall over her eyes before looking back up at him. "Would I be too greedy if I asked for more?"

Logan laughed brokenly. "You just answered every one of my prayers from the last six years."

Veronica smiled and pulled him close again for another kiss. He waited for her to make the first move this time, hoping against hope that she wasn't teasing him. She didn't disappoint.

As he dipped his head to suckle her the pulse point just below her ear, she skimmed her hands across his back and around to the waistband of his jeans. She unbuttoned them with one hand, giving Logan only momentary pause. He didn't voice the question that came to mind.

He felt the zipper slide down and the beautiful torture of her hand so near to his erection. She laid her hands on his hips as he kicked off his shoes, never letting his mouth stray from one part of her body or another. As soon as he'd kissed all the way down to her navel, there were no longer any clothes between them.

Logan glanced up at her as knelt between her legs. "I don't know if I'll be able to stop, Veronica," he choked out. He felt every bit of himself railing against his traitorous confession. On one hand, if she refused him now, his body would suffer. On the other, his ego was seriously wounded at his admission. But he had to give her control.

She smiled and slid down to her knees, facing him. The scantest of inches separated them and Logan strained for every one. Veronica laid her hands on his face. "I want this," she said, simply. Logan smiled, relieved and glad and in love...

_Love? Where did that come from?_

He shook his head and brought her close for another kiss. Veronica pulled herself onto the couch and Logan positioned himself between her thighs. They were deliciously hot against his hips and he found her entrance. She was dripping once more, ready for him. He guided himself into her, choking on his held breath because she was so small around him.

Once he was inside of her, Veronica prised her eyes open and looked up at him. His face was a mix of concentration and concern for her. She nearly laughed at how serious he looked. Instead she smiled up at him and trailed her fingers down over his chest and down to the trail of downy hair that led to the place where they were joined.

Logan took that as a green light and withdrew slowly. He tried to ignore the way the lamplight caught her blonde hair and spun it into gold and the way her taut breasts heaved as she breathed those husky breaths. But, when she murmured his name again, all pretense crashed down around him and he thrust in and out of her, increasing the tempo as she matched him.

Veronica curled her fingers around his biceps and pulled him down onto her so she could touch every part of him. She wrapped her legs around him, luxuriating the way her calf felt draped across his ass. She scraped her short fingernails down his back as he sucked her throat and laved her tender breasts. She felt her head loll back and the room disappeared as sensation took over again.

She closed her eyes and saw a bright spring day. Cherry blossoms exploded around them and whirled in pink swirls to the ground. Veronica heard Logan call out her name and opened her eyes to his shuddering orgasm. His face was intense, his eyes closed and his throat constricted. On the heels of her own orgasm, she felt him still inside of her, the proof of their passion filling her.

She smiled blearily at the thought as he laid his head against her shoulder. He might have said something, but all Veronica heard was a sigh.

When they finally drew apart, Veronica just reached around Logan to pull a blanket over them. They could afford themselves a blissful sleep before facing the harsh light of the morning.

With Logan wrapped around her, already breathing evenly, Veronica dozed. This time, instead of Lilly, she dreamed of cherry trees awash in sunlight.

**XxXxXxX**

**A/N2: **Written for the "Bad Romance Novel VM Smut Challenge" at lj's "romancingvm" with the prompt "In dreams and in love there are no impossibilities."

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